


searching

by fangirlingtodeath513



Series: Season 14 Codas [1]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Coda, Episode: s14e01 Coda, Episode: s14e01 Stranger in a Strange Land, Michael!Dean, Post-Episode: s14e01 Coda, Post-Episode: s14e01 Stranger in a Strange Land, Pre-Episode: s14e01 Coda, Pre-Episode: s14e01 Stranger in a Strange Land
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-20
Updated: 2018-10-20
Packaged: 2019-08-04 17:40:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,134
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16351175
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fangirlingtodeath513/pseuds/fangirlingtodeath513
Summary: Michael's gone, and Sam is left with Lucifer's vessel and a bunker full of Apocalypse world people. Will he manage to cope with everything going on?





	searching

**Author's Note:**

> wooo, first coda of the season!! :D

_ three weeks ago _

Sam barely gets a second to breathe before his next punch to the gut. Seconds after Michael takes Dean over and fucks off to who knows where, there’s a shuffling sound behind Sam and Jack. It’s like time slows down--the two of them spin around to find Lucifer sitting up and staring back at them, a hand pressed over the wound in his chest. Lucifer looks between them, but… there’s something off. Sam can’t place it, and it doesn’t seem like Jack can either.

 

“Uh… hi, fellas. This is… unexpected.” 

 

Sam can’t help but squint at him. It doesn’t  _ sound _ like Lucifer, it’s much too timid. With a cautious step forward, he finally finds his voice again, “Nick?”

 

He watches Nick sigh with relief and nod, but it’s still a bit surreal. “Yeah. Yeah, it’s me. He’s gone, I can feel it. It’s just me in here.” 

 

Jack is rightfully wary, but Sam’s been staring at that face for long enough to tell that it isn’t Lucifer. He lowers himself to the ground next to Nick, lifting the man’s hand off the wound. The edges are clean, but it definitely needs stitching and a bandage, sooner rather than later. 

 

“Alright, Jack, can you help him up? We gotta get out of here and find a car.” Sam frowns, glancing around. “And figure out where the hell we are.”   
  


“Help him?” Jack whispers, turning an accusatory glance in Sam’s direction. 

 

“Yeah, Jack. Help him. Lucifer’s dead, it’s not him. I know you can’t trust him, but trust  _ me _ .” Jack studies his face, eventually relenting and helping Nick to his feet. Sam scoops the archangel blades off the floor and heads outside. 

 

It’s dark out, which will help with stealing a car. It  _ doesn’t _ help Sam in figuring out where they are. He pats his pockets, relieved to find his phone there. It’s nearly dead, but there’s enough to pull up a map. They’re only three hours away from the bunker, so he instructs Jack to wait there with Nick while he finds a car. 

 

He isn’t gone long. There’s a parking lot nearby, so he steals the least conspicuous car and picks up Jack and Nick, the latter settling into the back seat with a sharp intake of breath. 

 

Their next stop is a gas station, though not for long. A first-aid kit and container of floss are tossed in the back seat next to Nick, where they remain until the first rest stop they come across. Sam guides Nick into the bathroom and makes quick work of cleaning the wound--as best he can with what he has anyway--before stitching it up. Nick’s surprisingly quiet during the process, but he can see the flickers of pain on the man’s face. He ties off the last stitch, grabbing a bandage from the kit and pressing it over the wound. He and Jack get Nick back into the car before cleaning themselves up. 

 

The logical part of Sam’s brain knows the three of them are probably in shock, but it also reminds him there’s nothing he can do right now. He’s got to get them back to the bunker before he decides what to do next. 

 

This is one of the only times he’s thankful for the way he grew up. He’s level-headed in stressful situations and has them back at the bunker just under four hours later. Nick narrowly avoids a punch to the face from Mary, with Sam in the background frantically explaining that Nick isn’t Lucifer. 

 

WIth that settled, everyone’s attention turns to him. Sam lets out a weary sigh, dragging a chair out and plopping into it as he explains what happened.

 

_ two weeks ago _

The bunker is bustling with activity and, thought it set Sam’s teeth on edge just one short week ago, he’s more than used to it now. There’s always some sort of background noise, and it honestly makes his research a little easier.

 

He’s taken the leading role with the people from Apocalypse world. It still makes him slightly uncomfortable, and he second-guesses every decision he makes, but with Cas and Mary backing him up, he’s a little more at ease. 

 

At night, though, it’s practically silent. Nick is usually awake, for the simple fact that he can’t sleep more than a few hours without getting nightmares. Sam hasn’t been able to sleep regularly since Dean said yes, and Cas doesn’t sleep at all. It seems like they’re the only ones, though. All the people from the other world seem grateful to have a bed to sleep in, and Mary and Jack are both getting their rest. 

 

Most of their time is spent on hunting. The Apocalypse world people quickly agree to become a hunting force with Sam in command, and they solve cases faster than Sam and Dean have ever been able to. With people rotating in and out on hunts, the bunker slowly becomes what it was meant to be: a hub of knowledge for the supernatural. 

 

In all of that knowledge, though, there’s nothing about tracking down a rogue archangel, much less one from an alternate universe that’s abducted your brother.

 

_ one week ago _

Cas leaves for Detroit at the beginning of the week, vaguely mentioning that he might have a lead on Dean. Sam offers to come along, but Cas insists that it probably won’t pan out and tells Sam to stay where he is. 

 

_ now _

Sam’s exhausted, to say the least. He feels like it’s been months since he’s gotten a proper night’s sleep--in reality, it probably has been. Nick’s wound is healing nicely, and the nightmares have become few and far between. Sam’s still wary of him, but it’s becoming easier to separate Nick from Lucifer. After all, Sam too had once said yes to the archangel.

 

Cas’s lead hadn’t panned out, unfortunately, but at least now they’re clear that there won’t be any meddling from Hell that they need to be worried about. Jack’s more intent on training than ever, and even Maggie has taken an interest in helping the other Apocalypse world people hunt. 

 

They’ve got a long way to go before they find Dean, and a disappointing number of dead-ends in their wake. Even if they  _ do _ manage to find him, they’ve got nothing to get Michael out of him, or capture the archangel once they manage that. Not even Cas has any suggestions, and Ketch hasn’t been able to find anything useful in England. 

 

Sam snaps his book shut and stares at the empty seat across the table. It’s so weird to not have Dean researching with him, and more than a little unsettling. He can’t think about that now, though--he’s got to find his brother, no matter what it takes. 

**Author's Note:**

> [rebloggable link here](https://fangirlingtodeath513.tumblr.com/post/179233421124/searching-a-14x01-coda-three-weeks-ago-sam)
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>  You can find me on Tumblr [here(:](https://fangirlingtodeath513.tumblr.com/)  
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> **Please don’t post my works anywhere without my express written permission.**


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